Skorm Snow-Strider
' , known as '''Skorm Snærfeti in his native language, is an Atmoran warrior and former Housecarl of Jarl Harald Word-Bringer. For his loyalty to Harald, he was named Thane of Morvunskar. He is descendant from the famous Rikvard Who-Strode-Through-Snow, a member of Ysgramor's crew during the Return. History Backstory Skorm is descendant from the legendary hero Rikvard Who-Strode-Through-Snow, one of the Five Hundred Companions. Rikvard was a crew member of Ysgramor's ship, the Ylgermet. During their campaign in the eastern lands that would become Østmark, Ysgramor and his crew were caught in a blizzard and had to seek shelter in a cave. Rikvard was left out as one of the scouts to keep an eye on enemy forces, as Ysgramor suspected that the Snow Elves would attack them. The Harbinger's suspicious proved correct as a Falmer battalion tried to ambush them during the blizzard. Rikvard was the only scout that managed to survive and he ran through the snowstorm to warn his crew members of the coming army. Because of his efforts, the Atmorans were ready for the attack and managed to defeat the elves. Rikvard's clan settled down in Østmark after Vindhelm was founded and have always maintained close ties to their lieges, Clan Word-Bringer. Many of his kinsmen have served as Thanes and courtiers to the Jarls of Østmark. Skorm is no different. He currently serves as the Housecarl of Harald Word-Bringer. The two met while competing in the Vindhelm bear wrestling tourney and became fast friends despite Skorm's being several years older than the young Harald. Having been bested by Harald, he swore to serve him and has been his right-hand since. He was Harald's First Mate during their raids and when Harald became Thane of Morvunskar he became his Housecarl and followed him there. Skorm is married and has two kids, all living in Morvunskar with him. He also has family in Vindhelm, a mother and an older sister who has her own family. Ballad of the High King The Dragon Jermulgraag Skorm returned to Vindhelm with his thane, Harald Word-Bringer, after they heard that Jarl Sigurðr had fallen ill. They headed straight to the palace and he waited for the thane in the hall while he went to check on his father. A few minutes later, Harald returned. Skorm could tell from his facial expression that the Jarl's health wasn't getting any better. The thane ordered him to fetch the Steward, Holma Brimill, and bring her to the great hall. The housecarl asked around and learned that the steward was at the city docks. He found her busy overseeing the loading of a shipment. He told her to meet the thane at the great hall when she was done, then headed there himself. He found Harald deep in drink and joined him to lighten his mood. Skorm told him about his family, they joked and drank until Holma finally showed up. Harald ordered her to bring him up to speed. Holma listed off a bunch of mundane tasks that the Jarl had yet to oversee and the problems of the citizens and the local area. Harald interrupted when Holma mentioned something about a dragon. She explained that one was spotted near Yorgrim. Apparently it was hiding out in the Velothi Mountains south of the town. Harald decided to put out a bounty on the dragon. Harald and his housecarl took a ship to Yorgrim, arriving in the morning after the news of the bounty. He had written on the bounty for any willing adventurers to meet him in the Chief's Longhouse in the town so the thane headed there to await the adventurers. He didn't have to wait long as later that same day two Companions arrived to accept the bounty, a man and a woman. Most of the Companions of the Ylgermet had left a few days prior on an Orc hunting quest, so Harald wasn't surprised that only two showed up. Still, he wasn't pleased with this. Fighting a dragon was work for more than two people. Yorgrim's chief introduced them and they discussed the details of the bounty, which Harald had learned himself from Chief Jænis Brák. A foreigner arrived, also wanting to pursue the dragon. He joined in the conversation after a quick introduction. They had narrowed down the area where the dragon was likely hiding, as Harald had sent some scouts from his company at Morvunskar. The thane was also going on this quest, since the three of them were too ill-equipped to kill a dragon. He told them to get ready as they would be leaving soon. He paid them part of the bounty upfront. The man, Jofrodr, took all the gold himself. After the bounty hunters left, Harald asked what his housecarl thought of them. Skorm thought they had potential and voiced his approval of the thane's decision to join the hunt. He had been wanting to go after the dragon, but would never go against the thane's wishes. Harald learned from his father to do things with his own two hands. They gathered their own supplies and awaited in the town square with horses and a sled until the bounty hunters returned. The foreigner, Kane, got on Harald's horse while the Companions took the spare. They rode for the southern forest at the foot of the mountains. Jofrodr asked Kane for his reasons for coming to Skyrim and the foreigner mentioned his clan, Clan Silver-Tongue, asking Harald about it. Harald had heard the name before and assumed them to be descendants of Companions that didn't remain in Skyrim after the Return. They suggested that Kane seek information from the Skalds to learn more. Eventually they arrived at the forest and ran into Harald's scouts. They told them about a clearing that they discovered that wasn't natural, clearly caused by the dragon's thu'um. While they were discussing the clearing, a masked woman approached them. The thane questioned her in the dragon tongue. She replied and let it slip that she wasn't alone. Harald looked around for her associates. Skorm and the others began to get ready for combat. The cultist, Heyvahrik, told them to stop what they were doing. She was clearly a Tongue. Harald told the others to stand down and questioned her motives. She wanted to halt their hunt without bloodshed. Jofrodr stated that there were no more cultists, having cast Life Detection to search the treeline. Harald aggressively asked her why they shouldn't just kill her and her dragon master, as they weren't going to allow such a dangerous beast live so close to Yorgrim. Harald asked her if she would step down and let them kill the dragon. She argued, trying to appeal to their simpaties to the endangered dragons. She failed, the Atmorans had no empathy for their former overlords. The female Companion, Reyl, said that there was no reasoning with zealots and Harald agreed. They were at an impass. He ordered Heyvah to step aside or fight. Heyvah chose to fight. Skorm threw the thane his weapon and Harald shouted, but the woman shouted as well. She began to move incredibly fast, faster than Harald with his Whirlwind Sprint. Not only that she moved more fluidly than him with his shout. She tripped him and then took out his three scouts, before disappearing into the treeline. All they could see of her were blurs as she moved. When she was gone, they questioned what happened. Harald knew the shout that she had used, Slow Time, he had heard of it during his training with the Hawk Cult. It allowed her to slow down time considerably, which made her appear to go fast while in fact they were the ones slowed down. Harald told them of the limitations of the shout and they came up with a strategy to use against her. They chased after the cultist, but she was long gone. The sun was going down, so Harald decided to make camp. They headed to the clearing, finding evidence of a recent battle there as they heard the cry of a dying animal and found fresh blood in the snow. The thane told them to investigate in the morning, as they needed to get the camp ready to last the winter night in the wilderness. They took turns on watch, Jofrodr taking first shift because of his Life Detection spell to keep and eye out for the cultist. Nothing happened during the night, so the group got a full night's rest and packed up camp in the morning. Harald chose to follow the blood trail in the clearing. There was dried blood near the fresh one that followed a parallel trail. Skorm suggested that it might from a survivor of the dragon attack that caused the clearing. The trail led to a cave not far from the clearing. Inside they found a fresh campfire who's ashes were still warm. Reyl led them with her magelight. The fresh blood trail led to an adult sabercat by the campfire, while the dried blood led futher in. They followed it and ran into three individuals. They told the thane's group to stop and identify themselves. Harald told them who he was. They introduced themselves as Stormhawks: Hefndir, Tiskr and Reeth. They claimed to also be after the dragon. Harald went to investigate the corpse. Hefndir, the masked leader, walked past him refusing to help them. Harald ordered Skorm to stop them. Skorm blocked the path of the other two Stormhawks while the thane examined the corpse. It was certainly killed by the dragon, probably before the sightings. Reeth, the mage, threatned Skorm with a lightning spell while his warrior friend Tiskr drew his weapons. Hefndir threatned to shout them apart if they didn't let his compatriots pass. Skorm wasn't afraid of their threats so he didn't move, still following the thane's orders. Harald threatned the masked leader and demanded them to back off and tell him what they learned from the corpse. The situation was getting more tense until the mage stopped his spell and told his friends to calm down. He offered to tell the thane all they knew if he let them pass. Harald agreed once they swore on their honor and told Skorm to stand aside. The housecarl did so and the situation defused. The mage told them that the body of the treasure hunter came from the clearing, no doubt killed by the dragon. The sabercats dragged it into the cave, which was their lair. They followed the blood trail there just the other day and that morning found a dragon claw on the corpse. It was likely that the dragon's temple was nearby and the beast killed the treasure hunter to keep its location a secret. Kane reminded Harald of the female cultist and he asked the Stormhawks if they had encountered her. They claimed not to have. The thane warned them about her power. She was their clue so the group decided to hunt after her, first returning to the clearing to follow the tracks that the scouts had found there previously. Jofrodr and Reyl stayed behind to investigate something in the cave. The others returned to the clearing. Harald calmed down the scouts when they got there, as the Stormhawks had reached it first and spooked them. He told his men what they found and asked them to report anything they found. One of the hunters, Þuli, showed them a torn up knapsack that they found southeast of the clearing. They also found another trail that led to the clearing, where the bag had been stuck to a tree. Inside was part of a map, but the part that was useless to them. They figured that the temple was nearby as they were pretty high up the mountain, so they split up to search for it. Since then Jofrodr and Reyl returned, with a sabercat cub following after them. Skorm remained with the scouts, the Stormhawks went off on their own and Harald led the bounty hunters to the south. Skorm and the scouts searched around the clearing for a time until they saw the signal from the Stormhawk mage that they found the temple. They were about to head there when heard someone approaching in the forest. Thinking that it was the cultist, they hid and waited for her near the camp. It was a man in steel armor that resembled dwarven design, though modified with Atmoran runes. Þuli distracted the man, giving him warning shots. Meanwhile, Skorm circled around to flank the stranger. Skorm approached him from behind, armed. They questioned the man and learned that he was a bounty hunter from Solstheim. The story seemed to check out so Skorm ordered the scouts to stand down. He decided to draft the bounty hunter into their quest and took him to the temple. When the duo arrived they didn't find the rest of the group, but the temple door was opened. They followed it inside to the entrance hall and took the left corridor from there. It led them into the Stormhawks just as they had set off a poisonous gas trap in a large chamber. Skorm and the hunter, Stinralg, ran up the stairs to a balcony to avoid the gas. The mage explained the situation and they decided to search around for a way to stop the gas. Skorm went to open a door, but was blasted to the floor below by a draugr's thu'um. Half a dozen draugr attacked the group. The Stormhawks fought off the draugr. Skorm told them that the room with the draugr lord had a chain that might shut off the trap. They began trying to make their way to the room to shut off the gas trap. They fought with near perfect unison, as they were used to each other's fighting styles. They killed the undead warriors and Reeth pulled the chain. The gas stopped, but what was already there remained. They walked through the gas, luckily avoiding breathing it in as Skorm had opened the doors to the outside. A wave of fresh air sent the gas away as they found themselves in a secret crater in the middle of the mountain. They spotted the dragon there, standing on a ledge above and altar, with the other humans at that same altar. Hefndir approached the dragon and spoke to it in Dovahzul, much to the dragon's surprise. The dragon was angered by the Stormhawk and shouted, creating a storm over the crater. The thane told them all to scatter to evade the storm that shot down lightning at them. Hefndir shouted as well, creating his own storm that boosted the dragon's own. Hef's shout hurt the humans more than the dragon, angering Harald. The mortals rushed into cover, trying to avoid the storms. Skorm took cover beside Harald. He was hit by the lightning, so his thane came to protect him. That only caused Harald to get injured. Reyl had cast a healing circle near the altar. Skorm dragged his injured thane there for him to heal. While Harald was healing, Skorm went off to help an unconscious Jofrodr, who had been hit by multiple lightning bolts. He dragged Jofrodr back into the temple where Reyl remained to heal him. Skorm rushed back outside to help fight the dragon. Harald tried to organize a unified front against the dragon. He formed a plan to bring the dragon to the ground and attack him from all sides and began to carry it out with the other dragon hunters. Reeth began to distract the dragon for the tongues to be able to catch him off-guard. Tiskr managed to hit the dragon with his shout, forcing the dragon to land on the ground. Harald charged at the dragon and ordered the others to attack. The female cultist came out of hiding and attacked the group, trying to protect the dragon. The thane kept the dragon from escaping, using Dragonrend on him. Tiskr, Skorm, Reeth and Harald took on the dragon while the others fought off the cultist. They slowly chipped away at the dragon's thick scales, though they failed to leave any serious injury on him. During the fight, Harald was caught in the dragon's bite and was gravely wounded. Skorm and Tiskr fought off the dragon while Reeth went to heal the thane. Alone, the two of them managed to do little against the dragon as it regained its ability to shout and nearly killed both of them. Skorm was shot into the air with a shout and left with dozens of small cuts from the magic wind. The dragon created a magic shield around himself so no further attacks could hurt it. The thane was back on his feet with the help of Reyl and a recovered Jofrodr. They coordinated a new attack against the dragon, with Reeth blasting it's magic shield with lightning. The group continued their attack, the dragon had been worn down by their attacks. Jermulgraag's injuries were mounting. Harald kept the dragon from escaping once more and then stabbed the dragon through the chest with his spear. With the others backing him up, Harald was able to finish the dragon off by stabbing him through the heart with Gungnir. Jermulgraag let out a final roar before dying in his own temple. Only the cultist remained. She seemingly surrendered, but when the hunters tried to imprison her she surprisingly attacked and then sprinted out of the temple. The hunters celebrated their victory over the dragon. Jofrodr joked with Skorm about Hefndir's uselessness in the fight. Stinralg, knelt in front of Harald and asked to be taken into his service. The thane agreed, as the man had proved himself capable enough to keep the cultist at bay. Skorm then convinced Harald to take a trophy of their kill back with them, so they lopped off the dragon's head and then had the scouts bring it back into town on the sled. The group arrived in Yorgrim the next day. Harald rode in the front on his horse. Skorm had the second horse, leading the sled carrying the dragon Jermulgraag's severed head. As soon as the first townspeople saw the dragon skull, word spread across all of Yorgrim. The people gathered around the group, their mouths agasp at the sight of the dragon's head. When they made it to the town square, Harald gave a short speech that caused the people to cheer his name and applaud the heroes. Chief Jænis arrived in the town square and called for a feast in their honor. The chieftain's announcement made the people cheer louder. That day Yorgrim was enthralled in a festival that lasted well into the night. Not even the cold could stop the Atmorans from celebrating. Death of Jarl Sigurðr The day after the celebration, Harald Word-Bringer ordered his longship at the Yorgrim docks to get ready for the trip back to Vindhelm. Skorm and Stinralg Berkenl moved the dragon skull aboard while he oversaw the scouts loading up the supplies. There were peasants around the docks. They were gathering around to see Harald and look at the skull with awe. Local bards were already starting to make crude songs about the great battle with Jermulgraag. Kane Styrson came to the ship as it was getting ready to leave the pier. The Cyrodiilic asked for a ride back to the city and the thane accepted. Once the supplies and the skull were in place, the ship pushed off the pier and began heading west to the city of Vindhelm. On the way, they talked and Kane asked if he could enter into Harald's service as Stinralg had. Since the man had proved his fighting skill on the dragon hunt, the thane decided to take him into his service. When they arrived Harald gathered up the people at the docks to tell them of his victorious quest against the dragon. The citizens cheered on as he played up the scene. With the crowd having slowed them down, the thane's group took almost an hour to make it to the palace. He had the guards bring his leftover supplies and the skull into the palace, while he remained behind and greeted his brother Olaf, who had arrived at the city from his temple. The two argued and Skorm decided to leave them be, leading Kane and Stinralg away to get themselves acquainted with the palace. Skorm led them to the palace steward, Holma. She welcomed Skorm back and asked how the quest went. The housecarl explained the situation then told her about Kane and Stinralg. She told him that his family had arrived from Morvunskar and Skorm left the two of them with her. Skorm spent time with his family, taking care of his son and daughter now that they had returned to the city. Skorm was present when Kane and Stinralg conducted their oaths to Harald and were officially inducted as his housecarls. They did things according to tradition, with each man kneeling before him and swearing upon his sword. Stinralg knelt before Harald and swore to never abandon battle and to fight for him always. Kane swore to fight for him as long as he lives and to avenge Harald should he die before him. It was about a week after Harald's return to Vindhelm that tragedy finally struck. Jarl Sigurðr subcome to his illness. He went to sleep one night and never woke up again. News of the death were already spreading through the palace, leaving the servants to mourn for their beloved Jarl. The Lawspeaker sent out criers to inform the city of the Jarl's passing. Later in the day the citizens gathered at the Palace Plaza. The city had taken the death of the Jarl with a heavy heart. Harald addressed them and told the people that he would hold a week-long festival in honor of his father until his funeral. That cheered up the people. Skorm and his family attended the week-long festival, watching the performers, eating in the markets and spectating the fights in the Pit. One day that he was with his kids and his sister, they noticed that Kane was watching them. Skorm spent the rest of the festival with his family and even watched a few fights in the Vindhelm Pit with his sone and Kane. Looming Threat Shortly before Jarl Sigurd's funeral took place, Lady Jóðdís of the village of Bjargveltask arrived in the city and told Harald Word-Bringer of attacks that had been happening in her southern lands. They had not yet discovered the source of the attacks and Harald decided to send some men under Skorm to investigate the raids. Stinralg was the first to volunteer for the mission. Harald approved of this and decided to send Kane Styrson on the mission as well. They were only to return with proof of the identity of the aggressors. They traveled to the lands under attack and searched around for clues. What they found were only burned down hamlets and farmsteads and no sign of the attackers. They rode towards Áfastr's Hamlet. It was a farming settlement about a week's ride from Bjarveltask. The farmer had recently sent his tribute to the village so the housecarls suspected that he was still alive. They rode around the curve of the road and got their first glimpse of the farm in the distance from in between the trees. The group heard a terrible cry echo over the area, followed by a scream and yelling. Skorm rushed towards the farmstead, with Kane and Stinralg going after him. Skorm arrived at the clearing only to find the homestead being attacked by a group of white armor-clad men. While Skorm had never met them in person, their pale skin, white hair, angular features and pointed ears gave them away as Snow Elves. He charged into battle on his horse, getting in between the elves and the innocent farmers. The elves outnumbered him, but soon Kane and Stinralg joined him and together they managed to hold them off. The elves had a mage with them, but Kane charged at him before he could kill them all with his magic. Meanwhile Skorm and Stinralg dueled the half-dozen elf warriors assaulting the farm. While they injured a few, they were unable to kill any elves, not until Kane killed the mage. Once the mage was dead the elves lost heart and retreated. Skorm ordered them to remain at the farm in case the Snow Elves returned, while Stinralg healed the civilians and the wounded housecarls. After confirming that the enemy weren't returning the housecarls escorted the farmer and his family to the village before heading back to Vindhelm with the body of the dead Falmer mage as proof of the attackers' identities. In Vindhelm they presented Jarl Harald with the body and told him of what transpired. Harald was enraged by the news and Stinralg as well. The Solstheimer suggested that the Jarl answer these transgressions with overwhelming force. Harald agreed with him and declared war against the Snow Elves as was his duty as Ysgramor's heir. Jarl Harald began to prepare for the coming war, gathering his soldiers and sending out calls to arms to all corners of Skyrim. He gathered the people of Vindhelm at the palace plaza and passionately proclaimed his war against the snow elves to them. His proclamation was answered with cheers and enthusiasm. It was soon after his return to the city that Harald decided to name Skorm as the new Thane of Morvunskar. He told the new thane to head there and prepare the troops for the coming war. Skorm took the job wholeheartedly and renewed his oaths to Harald. He moved to Morvunskar with his family and began to raise troops at the fortress. Personality Skorm was raised to be a warrior. His body and fighting skills were hardened from years of training in his youth, fighting with his father and in the Vindhelm Pit. His father taught him to be an honest man, never lying or trying to take advantage of others. After being beaten by Harald in the Pit, he became furiously loyal to the nobleman. He had never wanted nothing more than that, being content just being a warrior and serving his liege. During his time with Harald on raids to Dwemereth, he learned battle strategy and how to lead sieges. Despite his rugged appearance he is considered quite attractive to most Atmoran women, though he his already married. He is quite close-minded, being very stubborn when it comes to dealing with people. Statistics *Attributes: Strength and Endurance *Major Skills: Master One-Handed (Axe), Expert Block (Shield), Expert Leadership, Expert Light Armor, Adept Athletics, Adept Survival *Minor Skills: Hand-to-Hand, Acrobatics, Two-Handed *Abilities: Power Slam, Shield Charge, Pierce Armor, Evasion *Powers: Rugged, Resist Frost, Spell Wall *Equipment: Rikvard (War Axe that does frost damage and extra damage to elves), Steel Shield, Reinforced Leather Armor, Thick Fur Cloak. Trivia *Skorm Snow-Strider is a lore character that is mentioned in TES V: Skyrim. Category:Characters Category:Males Category:Atmorans Category:One-Handed Warriors Category:Housecarls Category:Thanes